NGFA Urges Corps to Delay Closure of Old River Lock

The NGFA led a letter from agricultural organizations to the Army Corps of Engineers urging it to delay its planned closure of the Old River Lock in Lettsworth, LA for dewatering from Aug. 15 to Nov. 13 this year.

“The timing of this closure would cause severe economic impact to farmers, domestic shippers, and domestic and international merchants of agricultural commodities,” noted the letter sent to Major General Diana M. Holland on May 13.

While NGFA and the 18 other agricultural groups recognized the need for repairs to this critical piece of infrastructure, they said closing the lock during harvest season for the region’s major commodities “would invite punishing economic and logistical problems.”

NGFA urged the Corps to delay the start of the project to Nov. 1 “to mitigate the negative impacts on the agricultural community.”

NGFA will be following up on its request in a meeting with the Corps.